[EAW] Independence

by Mitamajr

Imperial response

Talonuel pulled open the door to his mother's chambers, respectfully stepping aside. With a courteous nod, she stepped inside and pulled off the black veil that covered her face. Talonuel followed suit. Garia was gliding towards the window at the back of the room, her mourning dress trailing on the floor.

It had taken nearly an hour of driving through the city in the rickety and smoky and smelly car, but they had finally reached the palace. Garia and Talonuel had immediately headed for the living quarters. A few courtiers whose appointments had been canceled had tried to approach the pair, only to be turned away by servants or black-uniformed guards.

Sunlight pierced through the thin purple curtains covering the window, casting the room in a dream-like shadow. That shadow was parted when Garia tore the curtains open, gesturing for Talonuel to join her.

He walked over to her side and gazed out to the Palace Gardens below- a fenced-off area many square miles in size, the garden was a small forest inside the bustling city. Birds flew around the tall hardwood trees, chirping merrily.

"Your father loved the gardens," she said, taking in the sight. Gardeners moved about the place, and the children of high ranking courtiers ran rife among the shrubs and hedge mazes.

Talonuel nodded solemnly. "You two taught me to read there." His voice caught at his throat, making his words come out as a pathetic wheeze. His father had insisted on a colonel raising and teaching Talonuel, but Garia had held her ground.

Garia rested her wing on Talonuel's back. Before he had time to react, she had pulled him into a soft embrace, her head pressed against his. Talonuel responded in kind. A single tear rolled down his cheek.

"And I am glad we did."

Sobs wracked Talonuel's body, and he clutched Garia even tighter, like a child holding his plushie.

Garia gently stroked his arm, hushing as he did so. Right now, they were not a queen and a prince, bound by duties and formality, but a mother and son who desperately needed each other. The two shared their grief, taking turns comforting each other.

After what might have been hours, Garia shifted inside the feathery cocoon, signaling for Talonuel to pull away.

"I... I am so sorry," he managed to get out. "I should have been stricter with father. I should have ordered there to be more guards."

Garia cut Talonuel's self-deprecating rant before it had time to begin. "You are not to blame. Only the assassin, and whoever ordered their act is. Even a hundred guards would have been useless, having no right to come to the Imperial Palace with us."

She looked him in the eyes, allowing Talonuel to see she had cried just as much as he had. "My little Talonuel, you promised you would make things right, and I trust you to do so. But you cannot do that if you keep blaming yourself. Do you understand?"

His answer was a nod and gentle smile.

"Good."

The two stood up. A sense of warmth filled Talonuel, dulling the pain. The ache under his ribs weakened, and his muscles relaxed. With each slow breath, the tenseness left his body.

---

"I do not understand," Ottavia Altana said. The Wingbardian attaché to the imperial court trailed behind the superintendent of the Griffenheim police. Officers moved out of their way as they walked through the hallways of the Central Police Station. "What do you mean the investigation is canceled?"

"It means just that. The regency council has decreed that there is no need for an investigation," the superintendent said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "The assassin has disappeared without a trace, and the resources wasted there would be better spent quelling the republican protests."

"Of course," Altana thought grimly. The council had the powers of an emperor, and without a constitution to keep them in check, nothing was stopping them from blocking the investigation.

"My noble prince will be most displeased by the news, and I doubt he will simply drop the matter," Altana warned the officer.

"That will be his decision."

The two had finally reached the entrance. A receptionist's desk stood next to a pair of sturdy wooden doors. Outside, the first drops of a drizzle struck the pavement.

"For what it is worth, I am sorry."

Not much worth then. Rather than say it out loud, Altana answered with a simple thank you. With a sigh, he put on his top hat and stepped out, heading for the nearest telegram office. He would not enjoy this.

---

Bullseye.

Martin Scheu raised his revolver with a smug grin and dramatically blew away the smoke rising from its barrel. Fifty meters away, the center of his target was perforated with six holes. Behind him, a dozen griffons cheered him on.

"Fuck me," a slightly impressed voice said behind Martin.

The yellow griffon put his gun to its holster and spun around with a dramatic bow. "Aurora, have my marksman skills truly awed you?"

Aurora No-Surname was Martin's immediate superior. She was a pale gray griffon with an orange beak and short limbs.

"Yeah, yeah, they have," she muttered, pulling a cigarette from her creamy waistcoat. She did not sound happy. "Your common sense, on the other hand, has not. We are trying to remain quiet, and you start shooting." She scoffed and lit the cigar. "Do you mean to summon the police on our heads?"

"Please. This is the poorest part of Karthin. Unless a noble is murdered, flatfoots are never going to step in here," Martin dismissed her concerns.

"You are insufferably cocky," Aurora hissed, before turning to the other griffons. "Ah, well, the shipment is coming soon. Get the boats on the water. We'll leave in ten minutes."

The griffons hurried to obey. Before Martin had taken a single step, Aurora painfully grabbed his tail.

"Scheu, you are a useful asset, not an irreplaceable one. You are new, so maybe you haven't understood it yet, so let me explain: if you mess up, I'll tear your throat open. We good?"

"We good," Martin confirmed, definitely not afraid. Definitely.

Comments

[Salty Alty]

See this? I want more of this. Writing mistakes aside, EAW is a great universe which deserves more attention.

Good shit dude. I'll be interested to see where this goes.